A flashlight retainer holds a flashlight adjacent to an object, such as a user's head, thereby allowing the user to accomplish a task without the encumbrance of having to hold the flashlight.
Exemplary of known flashlight retainers is U.S. Pat. No. 3,249,271 to Allbritton which discloses a flashlight holder for supporting a flashlight adjacent to a user's head. The flashlight holder includes a headband having a front strap, top strap and a rear strap that are preferably made of spring metal or plastic. The rear strap can be adjusted to conform the headband to the dimensions of the user's head. A clip assembly comprising a spacing strip, mounted to the headband by a rivet or weld, and a pair of arcuate spring strips, located at the ends of the spacing strip, cooperate to secure the flashlight to the holder. The invention of Allbritton, while freeing the user from having to hold the flashlight, has several disadvantages. For example, the use of spring metal or plastic to construct the headband and/or clip assembly prevents compact storage of the flashlight holder when not in use. Further, the closed-loop character of the front and rear straps prevents the headband from being positioned about an object that does not present a free or exposed end. Moreover, the arcuate spring strips only accommodate flashlights having a substantially circular, cross-sectional shape. Additionally, the arcuate spring strips are designed to accommodate a flashlight having a specific diameter. Further, the attachment of the clip assembly to the headband by a rivet or weld prevents manipulation of the position of the flashlight and, hence, the position of the beam.
Another known, flashlight retainer is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,360,930 to Blanchard. Blanchard provides an apparatus for connecting a flexible headband to a flashlight. The apparatus includes an attachment member that is made of a suitable metal or rigid polymeric material. The apparatus further includes a first device for pivotally coupling a first end of the headband to a first end of the attachment member and a second device for coupling a second end of the headband to a second end of the attachment member. Also included in the apparatus is a device for connecting the attachment member to a flashlight. In one embodiment of the apparatus a C-clamp is used to connect the attachment member to a flashlight having a substantially circular cross-section. In another embodiment of the apparatus a rivet and washer assembly are utilized to connect the attachment member to a flashlight. In yet another embodiment of the apparatus a band, clamped between two halves of a particular type of flashlight, serves to connect the attachment member to a flashlight. While the apparatus of Blanchard does serve to free the user thereof from having to hold the flashlight it also exhibits several disadvantages. For instance, the rigid nature of the attachment member and, in certain embodiments, the rigid character of the device for connecting the attachment member to the flashlight prevents compact storage of the apparatus when not in use. Moreover, the device for connecting the attachment apparatus to the flashlight is not adaptable to accommodate flashlights of varying dimensional characteristics. Consequently, the dimensional characteristics of the flashlight dictate the type of device employed to connect the flashlight to the attachment member. Furthermore, the connecting device employed in certain embodiments of the apparatus does not facilitate the attachment of a flashlight thereto. Conversely, such connecting devices also inhibit the detachment of a flashlight therefrom.
Yet another known, flashlight retainer is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,462,064 to Schweitzer. Schweitzer discloses a headlamp assembly that includes a closed-loop headband that is made of an elastic material to accommodate varying head sizes. Attached to the headband is a clip having an inner surface that defines a hollow portion suitable for accommodating a flashlight with rearwardly converging sidewalls. Further, in order to improve retention of the flashlight in the hollow portion, the inner surface of the clip is impregnated with grit particles. The clip further includes a wedge which provides a surface for adhesively bonding the clip to the headband. The wedge also serves to position the clip such that the light beam produced by the flashlight retained therein intersects the line of sight of the user. Moreover, the wedge acts to stiffen the remainder of the clip. While the headlamp assembly of Schweitzer does free the user from having to hold a flashlight it also has several disadvantages. For instance the closed-loop nature of the headband prevents attachment of the headlamp assembly to an object that does not present a free or exposed end. Further, the clip is only capable of accommodating a flashlight having particular dimensional characteristics. Moreover, the rigid nature of the wedge and, apparently, the remainder of the clip prevents compact storage of the headlamp assembly when not in use. Additionally, the rigid construction of the clip prevents manipulation of the position of the flashlight retained therein and, hence, the position of the beam.
In yet another reference, U.S. Pat. No. 4,718,126 to Slay discloses a flashlight holding headband apparatus which consists of a first strap of hook material and a second strap of elasticized loop material, the two straps being sewn together end to end to form a composite strap. The composite strap can be wrapped about a human head and formed into a band by use of the hood and loop material. A section of elastic material is sewn to the strap at its edges with the terminal ends of the elastic material then being sewn together on the opposite side of the band in order to prevent the terminal ends of the elastic material from unraveling. In the practice of the invention of Slay, materials such as thread or glue are needed to attach the elastic section to the headband, as well as to attach the terminal ends of the elastic section to one another. In order to produce the structure of the Slay invention, one would first be required to obtain a first strap totally of hood material, a second strap totally of loop material, and then sew one end of the hook material strap to one end of the loop material strap. Then, in order to construct an open ended sleeve for receiving a flashlight, one would have to first connect the ends of an elastic section to form a cylinder, then turn the cylinder inside out, slide the cylinder over the strap of loop material, then attach the cylinder of elastic material to both edges of the strap. In addition to requiring an excessive number of steps, the structure of Slay also requires the use of an amount of hook material as well an amount of loop material which required to connect the ends of the composite strap into a band. Furthermore, the structure of Slay, in order to connect the terminal ends of the elastic section, also requires the use of an excessive amount of elastic to form an open ended flashlight receiving sleeve. It is therefore seen that it would be useful and efficient, in terms of reducing both production steps and the use of expensive materials, to have a headband apparatus for retaining a flashlight which provided the same function as that of Slay, but which was composed of a single strap of material having only as much connecting material at its ends as is required to connect the ends of the strap to form a headband, as well as by providing an open ended sleeve which was terminated at the edges of the strap, instead of encircling the entire strap. Such a structure would reduce the number of steps necessary to produce the flashlight retaining device as well as the amount of hook material, loop material, and elastic material which is required to produce the device.
In yet another reference, U.S. Pat. No. 4,797,793 to Fields provides a single piece strap which serves to both form a band for engaging the head of the user, and also to create a pocket for receiving the barrel of a flashlight. The flashlight receiving pocket is formed by connecting two ends of the strap material in an overlapping area. Fields teaches how this connection is accomplished near the side edges of the strap material, in order to create a flashlight receiving close ended pocket between the interior and the exterior sides of the strap material. The disadvantage of the construction of Fields is that the depth of the pocket that may be formed between its overlapping edges is limited, so that the flashlights of an extended length cannot be accommodated by the structure. It is therefore seen, that it would be desirable to have a flashlight retaining headband, which includes an open ended sleeve for receiving a flashlight any length.
Based on the foregoing, and amongst other things, there exists a need for a flashlight retainer that is capable of accommodating flashlights of varying dimensional characteristics. Moreover, there is a need for a flashlight retainer that can be readily compacted when not in use. Further, there is a need for a flashlight retainer that facilitates attachment and detachment of the flashlight. Additionally, there is a need for a flashlight retainer that allows manipulation of the position of the flashlight retained therein, and the beam produced thereby. Furthermore, there is a need for a flashlight retainer that can be positioned on an object that does not present a free or exposed end. Moreover, there exists a need for a flashlight retainer that can be adjusted for attachment to objects having different dimensional characteristics.